Back in Court on ObamaCare

This is has been a busy week on the legal front regarding challenges against ObamaCare, the government-run, pro-abortion health care law.

On Monday, a federal district court judge in Virginia declared a key provision of ObamaCare unconstitutional.  The ruling said the individual mandate - which forces Americans to purchase health insurance - violates the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution.  That is a significant victory.

We filed an amicus brief in that case representing 28 members of Congress and more than 70,000 Americans backing Virginia's challenge.

Now, we have filed an amicus brief supporting a Michigan challenge to ObamaCare and  we're urging a federal appeals court to overturn a lower court ruling and declare the individual mandate provision unconstitutional.

Without question, the individual mandate provision violates the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution.  A federal district court in Virginia this week understood that the key provision in ObamaCare is constitutionally flawed and is beyond the scope of Congress's authority.  It's our hope that the federal appeals court in this Michigan case reaches that same conclusion.

In the amicus brief filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, we contend that the Commerce Clause "authorizes Congress to regulate economic activity, not economic decisions."   The brief adds:  "As such, the Commerce Clause does not authorize Congress to regulate the inactivity of American citizens by requiring them to buy a good or service (such as health insurance) as a condition of their lawful residence in this country.  Because the individual mandate provision of the PPACA requires citizens to purchase health insurance or be penalized, the PPACA exceeds Congresss authority under the Commerce Clause."  The amicus brief is posted here.

In the decision earlier this week, the federal district court in Virginia declared the individual mandate unconstitutional saying it "exceeds the constitutional boundaries of congressional power."  The Obama Administration says it will appeal and we are already working on another amicus brief in support of Virginia's position as the appeal moves forward.

At the same time, we've filed our own federal lawsuit in Washington, D.C. - a direct challenge to the constitutionality of the individual mandate.  And, we have filed an amicus brief representing more than 60 members of Congress backing Florida's challenge of the health care law.

As you can see, the legal challenges are moving forward rapidly.  We will continue to keep you updated and we're hopeful that at the end of the day - which will ultimately mean a case going to the Supreme Court - that ObamaCare will be declared unconstitutional.